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Fire Chief Terry Ahlers said the department received the first call on the fire at located at Carpenter Avenue and First Street, around 10:40 a.m. Wednesday and the first crews arrived on scene within about two minutes.
With heavy winds whipping between the buildings and low water pressure, Ahlers said the fire quickly grew to a two-alarm and then three-alarm as it jumped to adjacent buildings.
The water company was able to increase the pressure to the area which helped, but the chief said three buildings at the lumberyard were destroyed as well as a vacant garage on Carpenter Avenue and a building on Van Ness Street.
More than 46 firefighters helped battle the blaze with one firefighter receiving burns to his face. Ahlers said the firefighter was treated at a local hospital and will be out of work for a few days.
The chief said just as they were cleaning up the first fire, they received another call for a kitchen fire around the corner from the first location.
"We were able to quickly mobilize at the second call and were able to contain the fire to the kitchen area of an apartment," he said.
Departments providing backup included Castle Point FAST Team, Cronomer Valley, Stewart Air National Guard Base, Goodwill, Vails Gate and West Point.
"The guys did a great job addressing so many fires at once," he said. "It was a busy day."
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